‘Pie Mania’ Raises Money for Food Depot

On Saturday, that room was inside the Builders Source Appliance Gallery on Pacheco Street, where hungry but charitably inclined people gobbled up free samples of pies and similar holiday dishes made by some of Santa Fe’s top chefs.

If they liked the samples, attendees had the chance to bid on whole pies, some of which sold for as much as $150.

Proceeds of the Holiday Pie Mania went to the Building Hope Project, a $3.6 million initiative by The Food Depot to build a new, 16,000-square-foot warehouse on Siler Road to help the effort to feed hungry New Mexicans across nine counties.

Staple pies – the pecan and pumpkin you’d expect to find around your Thanksgiving table – were represented at the event by a few of the chefs, but often with a twist. For example, Paul Hunsicker, executive chef at the Azur restaurant, offered what looked like a traditional pumpkin pie, but it had a little kick from the green chile he added to the filling.

“The bite complements the pumpkin,” Hunsicker said.

Chef John Vollertsen emcees during the Holiday Pie Mania fundraiser Saturday for The Food Depot.

Many chefs, as part of the event, were giving out recipes or offering advice on holiday-season baking. Hunsicker cautioned against too much green chile in the pumpkin. It’s not a burrito, he admonished, but should be just spicy enough to augment the pumpkin flavor.

“(Pumpkin pie) is much more versatile than people think,” he said.

Andrew Cooper, the executive chef at Four Seasons, illustrated the point with what he called a “pumpkin pie candy bar” – a sweet version of the pie that included pears, candied pecans and white chocolate.

“Why not play with pumpkin and do something more modern with it?” Cooper asked.

Stacy Pearl, executive chef at Walter Burke Catering and host of “Mouth of Wonder” on KSFR-FM, said experimenting with new blends of flavors is a trend. Pearl was showing off a pomegranate mousse pie, which was one of the few pies at the show with a tart flavor.

Andy Barnes, the chef at Dinner for Two, said making your own crusts was important. He described what he called “marble slabs” of crust he prepares for deserts like the butterscotch pie he made on Saturday.

“It’s a personal point of pride, actually,” he said of the chore.

Any good pastry chef needs a delicate touch, said Katharine Kagel, executive chef and owner of Cafe Pasqual’s. Overworked dough, she said, will come out tough.

Kagel and her chefs presented a treat from Kagel’s childhood, Della’s Baked Apple Dumplings – baked apples stuffed with raisins, cinnamon and brown sugar, then wrapped in pie dough.

Four Seasons Resort Rancho Encantado offered this pumpkin pie candy bar during the Holiday Pie Mania, held at Builders Source Appliance Gallery on Saturday and benefiting The Food Depot.

“I grew up with it,” she said. “The smell would fill the whole house.”

Food Depot director Sherry Hooper said the organization has raised $2.1 million toward its $3.6 million goal to build a new food warehouse from the ground up. She said the organization hopes to have the warehouse ready for move-in by January.